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Geno Smith, so good replacing Russell Wilson Seahawks say ‘stop talking about that guy’

Russell Wilson?

They are WAY past Russell Wilson.

That’s what the Seahawks are saying four eye-opening games into Geno Smith being the traded Wilson’s replacement quarterbacking the Seahawks’ offense.

It was about 20 minutes after Smith’s latest sterling performance passing, running and changing the offense into exactly the right plays in the team’s 48-45 shootout past the Detroit Lions Sunday. The News Tribune asked Will Dissly outside Seattle’s visiting locker room at Ford Field if Smith is exceeding the Seahawks’ expectations replacing Wilson.

“Listen, man, it’s week four. Let’s stop talking about that guy,” Dissly said.

He didn’t say Wilson’s name. He sure said Smith’s.

Yes, number 3 is SO past tense right now for the Seahawks.

“Geno’s doing a great job,” Dissly said after his team-leading third touchdown reception from Smith in four games to begin this season for the Seahawks (2-2).

“I appreciated him in the media telling how good the O-line did. ...

“He was a tremendous leader today. They really throw out some creative looks. They are a unique defensive front. And they really try to get after you and cause chaos. Geno was poised and got us in the right play calls. It was just up to us and go out and execute.”

Smith entered Sunday leading the NFL with a completion rate above 77%. Then against Detroit’s 25th-ranked pass defense he completed 12 of his first 14 passes with touchdowns to Dissly and Noah Fant by the time 5 minutes remained in the first half.

Seattle Seahawks tight end Will Dissly (89), defended by Detroit Lions safety Kerby Joseph runs into the end zone for a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Seattle Seahawks tight end Will Dissly (89), defended by Detroit Lions safety Kerby Joseph runs into the end zone for a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

The Lions blitzed every defender back to Hall of Famer Lem Barney at Smith. Detroit sent a steady stream of “zero” blitzes, all-out rushes with no safeties left in the middle of the field.

Prepared all week for that, Smith consistently changed plays against the zero blitzes. Both of Rashaad Penny’s long touchdowns were audibles. So was the key third down to Tyler Lockett late, when Seattle was a play away from punting the ball back to the Lions in a one-score game.

The Seahawks never punted Sunday. That’s the first time that’s happened in a game in franchise history.

Smith finished 23 of 30 for 320 yards and a passer rating of 132.6, the third-highest of his 10-year career. He also ran for 49 yards and a touchdown. Two quarterback draws run by Smith created 10 Seahawks points. The first one was for an 8-yard touchdown in the first quarter.

The second was for 13 yards and rescued a second and 25 in the second quarter, after a holding penalty on rookie running back Ken Walker. Those 13 yards gave Jason Myers what he needed to make a 56-yard field goal for a 17-9 lead.

How much better can Smith play than his 77.3% completion rate, seven total touchdowns against two interceptions and a 2-2 record with a horrible defense — including a win over Wilson and his Denver Broncos in the opener?

“He’s just been incredible,” DK Metcalf said, after his seven catches on 10 targets by Smith for 149 yards Sunday.

Surely Smith can’t be better than the best four-game completion rate to begin a season by a starting quarterback (minimum 125 attempts) in NFL history, can he?

“No, I can play better,” Smith said. “I have not exceeded my expectations.

“I can play a lot better.”

OK, he could be 35 for 35 for 350 yards and four touchdowns. But let’s face it: Not even sunny-at-midnight Seahawks coach Pete Carroll could have envisioned Smith being this efficient and effective in his first full-time NFL gig in eight years, since he was starting for the New York Jets in 2014.

Carroll couldn’t have dreamed the backup for the Jets, Giants, Chargers and Seahawks the last seven years — including barely playing the previous three seasons behind Wilson in Seattle —would be so good that Carroll’s defense would give up 45 points, and Seattle would still win.

Smith was so on it, he overcame the Lions’ and the Seahawks’ defenses Sunday. The win in Detroit was the most points Seattle has ever given up in a regulation-game win.

Asked if, yeah, this really has exceeded his expectations for Smith, Carroll smiled.

“He played pretty good football, man,” Carroll said.

“I’m just thrilled for him and for our guys that he’s had this kind of early success to jump-start this season and show us that we can play really good football with him at the helm. And he’s just been so rock steady throughout this whole process, and then he’s playing and doing it, taking it on the road.”

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith is hugged by guard Austin Blythe, right, after Smith rushed for an 8-yard touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith is hugged by guard Austin Blythe, right, after Smith rushed for an 8-yard touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

Geno Smith changing to right calls

Inside the visiting locker room Sunday, Seahawks coaches and players raved about Smith far beyond his impressive numbers. They talked of how effectively and precisely he communicated amid a loud Lions home crowd inside a dome.

Smith used silent counts and hand signals relayed from inside players to teammates on the edges of formations to get the Seahawks into the game’s two biggest plays. The 36- and 41-yard touchdown runs in the second half by Penny (151 yards on 17 carries) that restored Seattle’s lead to two scores were on audibles by Smith at the line of scrimmage. The quarterback did that through the noise on key third downs. Every player got every call, from linemen to Penny yards behind him.

“There’s a moment in this game when the crowd was as loud as it could have possibly been for that day, and he had to do something at the line of scrimmage, and he got it done,” Carroll said.

He did not specify if it was Penny’s third-and-16 touchdown of run in the third quarter to make it 38-23 Seahawks, or his sprint around right end on third and 2 late in the fourth quarter for the clinching points and a 48-38 lead.

“We made some great checks today, some run checks, that went for explosive touchdowns,” Smith said. “Those are things that we want to continue, so we’re going to continue to build on it.”

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith passes during the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith passes during the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Geno Smith deserved a hero’s exit?

Pressed on whether what Smith is doing now is the best possible vision Carroll could have had for his new quarterback before this post-Wilson season of change began, the coach thought of being 2-2 instead of 4-0.

“Yeah, well, we could have finished a couple of these (games),” Carroll said, such as last week in the 27-23 home loss to Atlanta in which Smith had a career day of 32 completions in 44 attempts.

“We had a couple of chances. Why do we have to lose any of the games?

“We don’t have to lose any of these games, so we were there. And he could have helped us, and everybody needed to help us, but that’s what he could have done more so. He could have been the hero, and we’re carrying him off the field in those, too, so. ...

“Today, we should have carried him off. It was a freakin’ great game.”